Edcon

Edcon Limited was a retail company based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Its subsidiaries included Edgars, a department store with 203 branches. In 2020, the Competition Tribunal approved the sale of the Edgars division to Retailability (pty) Ltd, and Jet to The Foschini Group.

Edcon Limited was a retail company based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Its subsidiaries included Edgars, a department store with 203 branches. In 2020, the Competition Tribunal approved the sale of the Edgars division to Retailability (pty) Ltd, and Jet to The Foschini Group. ==History== Edcon Ltd was the leading clothing, footwear and textiles (CFT) retailing group in South Africa trading through a range of retail formats. The first Edgars store was opened on 6 September 1929 in Joubert Street, Johannesburg by Sydney Press. It was listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 1949 and opened its first stores outside of South Africa in Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland (now Eswatini) in 1966-69. Since then, the Company had grown to ten retail brands trading in (as of 2014) over 1,400 stores in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Eswatini, Lesotho, Ghana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. In 1982 the company, still known as Edgars, was acquired by South African Breweries. It launched its Red Square retail chain in 1996 and acquired the struggling stationery retailer CNA in 2002 for R130 million. The company acquired the houseware retailer Boardmans in 2004 for R94 million. Edcon Financial Services provided credit facilities and financial services products to the Group's over 4 million cardholders. In November 2015, according to reports, Edcon Limited referred to the National Consumer Tribunal. In October 2017, it was reported that Edcon rewarded its customers with a revitalised thank U customer reward programme. Bain Capital concluded a private equity deal that delisted the group from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 2007. Following the delisting the company experienced numerous challenges. In early 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company ceased to pay rents for its retail locations while the resultant lockdowns in South Africa prevented businesses from operating. The group has subsequently gone into Business Rescue with a number of their subsidiaries being sold off to other Fashion Retail Holding Companies. ==Divisions== Defined by the target markets served, all retail business is structured under two divisions: Department Stores Division (serving middle and upper income markets): Edgars (operates in Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland, South Africa, Zambia) CNA (operates in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana and Namibia) Boardmans (operated in Botswana, South Africa, Namibia) (CLOSED in 2018) Prato (operated in South Africa) (CLOSED) Red Square Temptations (CLOSED) Discount Division including (serving middle to lower income markets): Jet (operates in Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia). Jet Mart Jet Shoes Blacksnow (CLOSED) The company's shares are publicly listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange and Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, and is part of the Zimbabwe Industrial Index. ==References== ==External links== Edgars Stores official site Edgars Club official site Edgars Stores Limited at Google finance Business Day, article 'Edgars to anchor Rosebank centre' 6 Aug 2008, retrieved 24 Jan 2009 Business Day article 'Retail giant Edgars starts a new chapter' 7 May 2007, retrieved 24 Jan 2009 1 Business Day article

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